Malcolm Turnbull lists ways to avoid having your metadata collected

THINK Malcolm Turnbull’s metadata laws are too tough? Don’t worry, the Communications Minister has helpfully listed at least seven ways you can get dodge them.

COMMUNICATIONS Minister Malcolm Turnbull has helpfully listed a number of ways to get around the tough metadata laws he is pushing through parliament.

The Government hopes to pass controversial laws through the Senate today that would require telecommunications companies to keep consumer’s metadata for two years.

During a television interview Mr Turnbull was pushed on whether people could avoid detection by the retention law Mr Turnbull conceded there were “always ways to get around things”.

Malcolm Turnbull says there are ‘a gazillion’ apps you can use to avoid metadata retention.

The Minister admitted his metadata retention laws were not “a silver bullet”, and even went so far as to list at least seven different services journalists could use to get around them, and encouraged them to do so.

“If you have a device, and if I call you just through the mobile phone network, then there will be a record at my carrier that I’ve called your number,” he told Sky’s David Speers.

“If on the other hand I’ve called you by Skype, or a voice call on Viber, I send you a message on Whatsapp or Wickr or Threema or Signal, you know, Telegram, there’s a gazillion of them.

“Or indeed, if we have a Facetime call, the telco can see that I have made a connection to a Skype server or a Whatsapp server, it doesn’t see that I’ve had any connection with you.”

When pressed on whether these workarounds could also be used by terrorists or sex offenders, Mr Turnbull said the tough laws were not going to be “a guarantee”.

It really is that simple ... Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

“There are always ways for people to get around things, but of course a lot of people don’t,” he said.

Mr Turnbull said whistleblowers and journalist’s sources had “nothing additionally” to fear, saying telcos had been keeping call charge records for periods of up to seven years for a very long time, and those records could be accessed by a number of agencies, “even the RSPCA”.

“People didn’t realise what was going on,” he said.

“The fact is we’re narrowing the scope dramatically as to who can access this material”, adding accessibility would be limited to police and ASIO.

The Communications Minister was last month outed as a Wickr user, using the encrypted messaging app to bypass his own tough laws, and now admits he uses a number of similar services.

“I am the Communications Minister,” he told Speers.

Malcolm Turnbull loves metadata-shredding messaging app Wickr.

The Coalition wants the laws, which would require telecommunications companies to keep consumer’s metadata for two years, passed by the end of the week.

Senators stayed back late on Wednesday night to consider the changes, which Attorney-General George Brandis argues are crucial for police and intelligence agencies to thwart terror attacks.

Liberal Democrats senator David Leyonhjelm, independent Nick Xenophon and the Greens all want tougher privacy safeguards.

The laws passed the House of Representatives with bipartisan support last week after the government and Labor reached a deal on amendments to better protect journalists.